by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief
(Worthy News) – The U.N. General Assembly voted Thursday to let Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas address next week’s gathering by video after the United States denied him a visa for the second year in a row. The measure passed 152–3, with four abstentions. The United States, Israel and Paraguay voted against it.
Washington extended visa restrictions on Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization officials this week, saying they had failed to meet commitments tied to peace efforts. The State Department cited payments to families of prisoners convicted of attacks against Israelis and Palestinian efforts to bring cases against Israel before international courts.
Israel’s U.N. ambassador, Danny Danon, said Abbas cannot expect the international community to overlook those payments. The vote gives Abbas a way to speak to world leaders, but it leaves the dispute over Palestinian Authority policy unresolved.
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